In a clear sign that Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's vitriolic
anti-American re-election campaign last month seriously compromised
relations between the two nations, Fischer was refused a White
House meeting. And considering how the Fischer-Powell meeting went,
it was a wise decision, said Nile Gardiner, a visiting fellow in
Anglo-American security policy.

"German officials are still offering empty platitudes instead of
any real concessions, which shows that they just don't get it,"
said Gardiner. "If Berlin refuses to stand by its allies in
confronting the threat posed by the Iraqi regime, it will be seen
as irrelevant in the global fight against terrorism,
and-frankly-will open itself to charges of moral cowardice."

Worse, the Heritage analyst said, by continuing to oppose a
possible war with Iraq, Germany is letting itself be used by
Saddam's regime, which has publicly thanked Berlin for its stance.
Saddam's son Uday even lauded the German chancellor's positions as
"more honorable than that of the Arab countries."

In Gardiner's view, Germany's embrace of what he calls
"appeasement" stems from a desire to distance itself from its Nazi
past. "National pacificism, however, does nothing to excise
national socialism," he said. "Germany should realize that its
proper place in this fight is beside its allies, not Baghdad."